Philadelphia Eagles Team Release.
On Tuesday, the Eagles addressed the immediate question of the quarterback position by agreeing to terms with Sam Bradford on a new two-year deal through the 2017 season.
Bradford was acquired by the Eagles on the first day of the 2015 NFL league year in a trade that sent Nick Foles to the then-St. Louis Rams. Coming off of his second surgery on his left knee, Bradford was limited during offseason workouts and mini-camps, but was ready to go by the time the regular season opener took place in Atlanta.
Bradford’s first season in Philadelphia got off to a slow start, but after the team’s bye week in November, the quarterback stepped into a leadership role, addressing his teammates in the locker room before games and asserting himself as one of the vocal presences inside the room. Bradford missed parts of three games after injuring his left shoulder and suffering a concussion against the Dolphins in Week 10, but still finished the season with 3,725 passing yards (the fourth-highest single-season total in Eagles history), 19 touchdowns and a passer rating of 86.4. He also set new franchise records with 346 completions and a 65.0 completion percentage.
Bradford’s second season in Philadelphia will be his first under head coach Doug Pederson and offensive coordinator Frank Reich, but Bradford will have the advantage of another year of working with the Eagles’ cast of weapons. The former Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Oklahoma and the No. 1 overall pick of the 2010 NFL Draft, Bradford developed a great amount of chemistry with players like wide receiver Jordan Matthewsand tight end Zach Ertz in 2015 and will now look to build on that under his new contract.
“He has to be the guy,” wide receiver Jordan Matthews said at the end of the season. “Point blank. Period. He has to be the guy. You gotta build. You’ve got to continue to grow with people. I think it goes without saying his maturation, what he’s been able to do these past couple of games and how he’s ended the season. You look at the numbers, OK, yeah, I knew he was going to get that regardless, you look at his leadership, how the guys are really starting to gravitate towards him, how they’re starting to trust him and then the reps he’s building with all of his receivers.
“You can look at Zach from the first part of the season to this part? It’s night and day. You can look at me from the first part of the season to this part? It’s night and day. So, like I said, he has to be the guy and I want him to be the guy.”
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